RSD Travel cheap coach tour to Turkey

A question about : RSD Travel cheap coach tour to Turkey

Just got back yesterday from this week tour In the Steps of Alexander the Great. Very exhausting programme with early starts, long coach journeys and late hotel arrivals. However, all hotels clean and reasonable quality; food a bit bland but plentiful; guide Cigil excellent; driver Hasan safe and highly recommended; chances to relax nil; sites visited and information/photo opportunities/frequent loo stops/ all top marks. Value for money definitely but you need strict Olympic training before you go to survive! Flight time out from Gatwick fine but return flight at 5.30am dreadful. Total cost around Ј429 all in with all food, entrance fees included, only half of this payable before you go, the remaining Ј200 payable when you arrive in Turkey. Only took Ј100 spending money to cover just drinks and a couple of souvenirs and could have brought change home. Will definitely try another tour with them while I have the energy. Recommended for the energetic and historically interested but not the faint hearted, decrepid or those wanting an easy week near a pool etc.

Best answers:

• So pleased you posted your findings, I am off next week on the same trip.
• I have posted a long thread on the main "holiday deals" thread.
  Our guide Hilmi was absolutely awful. His knowledge was very limited and he was so rude and clearly was not keen on his own country. Long days for sure. We arrived at hotel on first day 5am and had to be out by 8am. No sleep for 48 hours. Fine if you can sleep on planes and coaches......sadly, I just cant - I need a bed.
  Our flight back was in the afternoon which was good timing but we had to come back via Gatwick to Manchester. Met people on the way back that had fantastic guides, we drew the short straw. There are a couple of other trips I would like to do but only if I was guaranteed not to have Hilmi again. Yes, even after paying the extra money good value. Meals were mainly buffet, did not vary much in content from hotel to hotel but tasty and plentiful. I too took Ј100 in TL and came back with change.
• We go on 10 March. Is it possible to opt out of some of the trips, we don't want to go on carpet, jewellery and leather trips. Done them before. Is there any chance to do your own thing?
• We did the Alexander the Great tour last year from Stansted - didn't expect much, but it was great fun and really good value for money.
  Sandy, yes you can opt out of the trips. My OH is a committed lifelong vegetarian and didn't want to visit the leather factory.
  We had a fantastic guide and a coach full of really fun people. We keep in touch with a lot of them and meet some for dinner every few months.